Carrier Grade Linux: The cornerstone of telecoms’ COTS strategy

The telecommunications industry is in a state of profound change and is now beginning its long rebound from the burst of 2001. The industry is finally starting to see significant consumer demand for 24x7 accessibility to multimedia-based high bandwidth services. Of course consumers want these new services for less than they used to pay for standard voice service. This demand is driving the rapid growth of Next Generation Networks (NGNs) and thus provides opportunity for increased revenues and market share, if the service providers can react to the market. But this increased opportunity is also causing the emergence of new competitors to service these markets. These new competitors do not have the large inventories and cost structures that were created prior to the burst. Service providers are faced with the challenge of providing new services while continuing to reduce capital and operation expenses. These service providers must find cost-effective methods to drive down costs and get higher margins in return for their services.